Marni Yang guilty: 'This verdict means justice'

A sensational murder trial that featured secret recordings, buried evidence and homemade weaponry ended Tuesday with a guilty verdict against Marni Yang, an occasional lover of former Chicago Bear Shaun Gayle who stood accused of murdering a romantic rival.

Yang, 43, sat stone-faced as a Lake County jury of nine men and three women found her guilty of killing Rhoni Reuter and Reuter's unborn child on Oct. 4, 2007. Reuter had been more than six months pregnant with Gayle's daughter, whom she had named Skylar.

Yang will be sentenced April 29. Her crimes, first-degree murder and intentional homicide of an unborn child, carry a mandatory life sentence, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said Yang, a mother of three who was Gayle's real estate agent and sometime bedmate, had used nasty, anonymous letters in an attempt to drive off other women who were friendly with Gayle. But when she learned Reuter was pregnant with Gayle's child, authorities said, her jealousy took a lethal turn.

She took a handgun and a silencer — made from parts she bought at Home Depot — and waited in ambush outside Reuter's Deerfield condominium, prosecutors said. When Reuter opened the door to leave for work, they said, Yang attacked, firing six shots into Reuter's body and head — the first two aimed at her belly.

Police quickly learned about Yang's relationship with Gayle and grew suspicious. They questioned her over three days in early 2008, but she did not confess.

The turning point in the investigation came two years ago, when police pressured Christi Paschen, Yang's alleged confidante, into surreptitiously recording conversations with her friend. On one tape played in court, Yang described graphic details of the crime and its cover-up, including disposal of the murder weapon.

"They are never going to get it," Yang said. " … It's under tons and tons and tons of Chicago trash."

Paschen also led police to a patch of land where they dug up a silver and pearl bracelet that Paschen said came from Reuter's condo. The bracelet was inscribed with the word "Pregnant."

With the recorded conversation in hand, authorities charged Yang with the murders of Reuter and her unborn child. The lengthy pretrial process included a request for a change of venue (it was denied), a psychological exam for Yang (she was determined fit to stand trial) and arguments over Yang's 2008 interrogation (a judge ruled it inadmissible because Yang had not been properly advised of her right to remain silent).

The trial began March 4. The prosecution's long list of evidence included letters found in Yang's home that warned other women about Gayle's dating life; a bank statement showing that Yang had ordered two books on how to build a silencer; and a prepaid cell phone she used to call Paschen after she had committed the murder.

Defense attorney William Hedrick called only three witnesses and finished his case in less than 30 minutes. He claimed that Yang had lied during her alleged confession to Paschen, and that no physical evidence tied her to the crime.

After the verdict, which followed four hours of deliberation, he said he planned to appeal "on every ground I can think of."

Yang's mother, Francine Merar, declined to comment.

Hedrick had hammered at Gayle's love life during the trial, suggesting that another woman or even Gayle himself should have fallen under suspicion. The onetime safety for the 1986 Super Bowl champions testified for the prosecution and was in the courtroom when the verdict came in. He showed no emotion other than a slight nod of his head.

Later, he told reporters that the murder and trial had been excruciating ordeals. Police had wired his house so they could intercept his conversations with Yang, he said, and sometimes texted him questions they wanted him to ask.

"I can't even begin to describe (the tension)," Gayle said. "I just had to keep repeating to myself that this is what needs to happen to make the arrest."

He discounted the defense's description of his supposedly amorous lifestyle, saying Yang had concocted that for her own purposes. He and Reuter had not planned to have a child together, he said, but he was excited about helping to raise the girl.

Asked if he had any regrets, he replied: "Of course. The fact that Rhoni's not here and we don't have a 3-year-old daughter. That's going to be something that I live with."

Judge Christopher Stride did not release the names of the jurors. They left the courthouse without speaking to reporters.

Thad Reuter, Rhoni's brother, said the family was overjoyed with the verdict. They had had been in limbo since the murder, Reuter said, as though their own lives had stopped along with Rhoni's.

"Today a huge weight is taken off our shoulders," he said. "Unfortunately, it will not bring back Rhoni and Skylar. They will always be missed. They will be with us in our hearts."

Lisa Black and Richard Wronski are staff reporters; Ruth Fuller is a freelance reporter. This report was written by Tribune reporter John Keilman.